Despite the active role of Tunisian women in professional life and civil society, their presence in decision-making positions at all levels (political parties, local councils, parliament…) remains much below their expectations. Moreover, the Article 45 of the new Constitution stipulates that the State must work to achieve parity between women and men in elected councils. For this reason, women’s participation in political life and in the decision-making process in the Tunisian society in transition is becoming an urgent need to reinforce equality between women and men and ensure parity.

Mouwatinet carries out an advocacy campaign in the municipalities of Sfax ville, Sakiet Ezzit, Agareb and Mahres, which aims at supporting women’s participation as candidates in the upcoming 2017 municipal elections, in order to promote women’s role in local governance, political life and decision making in Tunisia.

The strategy of the campaign is to mobilize the media, the deputies of the National Assembly, and the local deputies, on the importance to have women in the highest decision-making positions and women elected in municipal councils. In order to achieve these goals, the campaign will include discussion meetings and workshops with civil society, political parties and independent women; the creation of pedagogical material for raising awareness about gender equality and women’s representation in the local councils; and training of women potential candidates to the municipal elections on leadership, gender, local governance and communication. In addition to that, an outreach campaign including the distribution of flyers and realizing flash mobs, a press conference, an online petition and other activities will be organized in public spaces.

The first event of this campaign was held on the 3rd of March, 2017, in Sfax. Moreover, Mouwatinet started to mobilize the media in order to disseminate the campaign (Diwan Radio FM, Sfax radio, News presse).

This campaign is part of the project CSO WINS « Capacity building in Southern Mediterranean to open policy dialogue and monitoring for women in society » funded by the European Union, in synergy with the action of the Foundation.

The campaign is coordinated by Mouwatinet in partnership with the association Voix de Femmes Marocaines as part of a peer-to-peer learning exchange.